Tuesday, 27 December 2011

Maxi yachts lead start, and all the way....

They're Wild Oats XI and Investec Loyal - who led the way out of the Heads...

And 30 hours later are still in the same position - first and second. They should finish some time tomorrow.

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For anyone who knows about these sort of things:

Wild Oats XI is racing for the seventh consecutive year. It holds the record for the most consecutive line honours wins - four, and has won five of the past seven. She's a 100 ft maxiyacht owned by Robert Oatley, and skippered by Mark Richards.

According to Forbes magazine, Oatley is Australia's 24th wealthiest person. He used to own Rosemount Wines (sold to Southcorp, then sold his Southcorp stock to Fosters). Now owns Robert Oatley Vineyards in Mudgee. Also owns Hamilton Island resort in Queensland. His ancenstry goes back to convict clockmaker, James Oatley, for whom the Sydney suburb of Oatley is named, after he received a land grant there.

Loyal (formerly Maximus) is skippered by Sean Langman and owned by Anthony Bell, a Sydney financial services businessman. . It is sponsored by merchant bank, Investec, and raises money for the LOYAL Foundation, Bell's charity foundation, which raises money for several charities. Crew members include several high profile sports people.